The Agra Summit

The India Pakistan summit talks have once more raised the hopes among the people of the subcontinent. Prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Pakistani president Pervez Musharraf are all set to meet in Agra, once the imperial capital of Mughal India on 15 July to discuss bilateral relations.

Yet, will these talks go beyond the symbolic "India-Pakistan bhai bhai"? Beneath the common culture and similarities lie years of distrust and self-interests that see each other at cross purposes. Not the least is the vexed issue of Kashmir, a piece of territory that India holds and which Pakistan claims.

Air Chief Marshal (retired) S K Kaul, former Chief of Air Staff, Indian Air Force, masterminded the IAF during the 1971 war. He remains actively involved in defence issues and understands what is at stake and what is needed.

So what can one expect from the Agra summit? Find out from ACM S K Kaul on The Rediff Chat on Saturday, 14 July, 2001, at 1600 hours (0630 hours EDT).